How To Dress Well – The Anteroom // Album Review

A decade into his career as How To Dress Well, Tom Krell is gunning for something boundary-breaking with his fifth record The Anteroom. Ambition doesn’t always translate to the finished product though and opener ‘Human’s Disguised As Animals’ feels short of any inventiveness. The thirteen lengthy tracks play as one continuous piece as he dabbles with a personal narrative, fragile vocals and emotive synths. Krell dips in and out of different ideas but rarely commits himself to any of them. He has, however, mastered the art of build and release as the intimate moments satisfyingly grow into turbulent bouts of chaos. This album is soothing and easy to lose yourself in, but the overall package comes off as something nondescript and doesn’t do enough to truly excite the senses.